What happened when a Northampton mother intervened in an instance of bullying
NORTHAMPTON -- Although I was bullied as a youngster, I did not recognize that my son was being bullied when he was a young teen. I knew he was being verbally targeted because he was Jewish, but I didn't have the label for the behavior.
He was on a high school sports team, and the co-captain of the team continually harassed my son about his being Jewish.
The straw that broke the camel's back, so to speak, was when the boy with the big mouth told my son that he was not allowed to shoot hoops on the basketball court because it was off limits to Jews.
Although my son did not want me to get involved, I did.
I contacted the team's coach, told him what was happening, and asked him what he was going to do about it.
With relief, I was told that the coach would demand that the bully apologize to my son. If he didn't, he would not only be stripped of his leading role, but he would be kicked off the team.
The apology, whether sincere or not, was given, and the bullying stopped.
Thus, one thing a victim or his/her advocate can do is "tell."
Comments
Thank you.
Thank you for sharing a story that demonstrates that the courage to speak up can work. So many worry it will backfire, but more often than not, it can help. The more we take a public stance on this issue and promote education on the topic, the more we will give others - parents, kids, school staff - the courage and support they need to come speak up. I have been thanked personally by two parents for my first contribution to the Aspire Project. They had chilren that were bullies but feared going to the schools. They hope that this project will empower people to take action. I think it will.
Too lenient
The solution here was far too weak to be effective. I believe the correct response would been to remove the co-captain from the team regardless of any apology. Any child who has that sort of attitude has no business leading others.